Drummer, percussionist, composer, arranger, teacher.
Raffaele Califano, after years of playing and composing, started his own project, a Quartet, where he gives the band his name and says what a drummer wants to say from the first row. With the Califano band he released two albums: musicians are different and there is a special guest for any of them.
His most recent album "Horizontal Dialogues" was recorded with the American saxophonist Seamus Blake. The album was released in October 2017 by Alfa Records.
This one came after his first album as band leader and composer, author and arranger of all the tracks: “Brush Up”, recorded with the Raffaele Califano Quartet. The album was officially released on November 27, 2015 by Alfa Records - distributed by Egea."Brush Up” is available in all the major music shops and in the most important digital stores. This album is the result of many years of study and many experiences in the most varied music genres, from classical music, to jazz, to contemporary music and to any kind of influence and own personality.
Notwithstanding his great experience as a musician and as a teacher, Raffaele Califano keeps searching new stimuli and experiences to further develop his knowledge of his instruments: he graduated in drums and percussion jazz at Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome.
In 2009 he graduated as “Lyricist” at C.E.T. (Centro Europeo Tuscolano) with famous Italian lyricist Mogol – Department of Music Entertainment and Culture. From 2007/8 he was music teacher at public school S. Quasimodo in Rome and from 2011/13 at Ada Negri School in Rome.
From 2006/7 he took part as sideman in the following recordings:
Paolo Di Sabatino - Postcard From Brazil
Eddy Palermo - Brincando Entre Amigos
Giò Marinuzzi - Amigos
Pierpaolo Borgia - Solara
Ney Portilho - Boa Viagem
Raffaele Califano – Brush Up
Raffaele Califano – Horizontal Dialogues
In 2004/5 he is the drummer of João Braga Trio (excellent and virtuoso Brazilian pianist). He also created his own Trio named Jazz is a spirit: with this band he proposed a repertoire ranging from traditional jazz to the ECM repertoire from the early 60s to the present time, in a modern reinterpretation. He also started recordings of Brazilian jazz music as band leader of his Trio in his own recording studio.
In 2004 he recorded an album with Eddy Palermo, feat. Toninho Horta (with whom he took part in the clinic held at Saint Louis College of Music in Rome).
Further, he developed a new project with Kiko Continentino and Milton Nascimento.
In 2003/4 he studied in the USA at Berklee College of Music in Boston in the Department of Percussions, with Skip Hadden, John Ramsay, Gary Chaffee, Bob Moses and Francisco Mela, and in New York with Portinho and Vanderlei Pereira.
He held two lessons of Brazilian percussions at Berklee College of Music in the classes of Mark Walker and Skip Hadden and two concerts: at New England Conservatory with the Duo Sofia Koutsovitis and Monika Heidemann in “Voice Recital”, and at Neath’s in Providence, with saxophonist Dan Moretti and guitarist Bruce Bartlett.
During the first 2000 decade he plays with Toninho Horta, Alfredo Paixão, Arthur Maia, Irio de Paula, Fabrizio Bosso, Eddy Palermo, Marco Zurzolo, Themis Rocha, Mike Supnick, Rosalia De Souza, Marco Siniscalco, Alessandro Gwis, Riccardo Biseo and has been performing at Villa Celimontana, Fiesta, Alexander Platz, La Palma Club, Micca Club and also in RAI broadcasts.
In summer 2002 he conducted the ensemble of Brazilian percussions at the Summer Stage of the Accademia Musica Moderna di Franco Rossi, in Milan.
In 1999 he recorded another album with Paolo di Sabatino, “The Postcard From Brazil“.
In this period he recorded two albums: the former with Paolo Baia, “Feijao Tropical”, and the latter with Ney Portilho and Irio de Paula, “Boa Viagem“.
In the early 90s he started the study of classical percussions at Conservatory A. Casella in L’Aquila. He graduated at the fifth year in Percussions and music history.
Raffaele Califano started his studies of music with Antonio Golino. From 1980 to 1987 he has been collaborating with Pino D’angiò, Peppino Gagliardi, Cristiano Malgioglio, Bruno Martino, taking part to their tours.
He also took part in RAI broadcasts and Cantagiro.
He further developed the study of South American Music, in particular in Brazilian Music: he performed inthe many clubs in Rome (Bossanova Berimbau, Garota de Ipanema, Fiesta, to name a few) and in many other towns in Italy and abroad.
In these photos (credits to DANILO D'AURIA)
Califano records his "Horizontal Dialogues"
with Seamus Black, Antonio Magli and Francesco Pierotti